Monty's Gaming and Wireless Outlook - Issue 193

He's here, he's there, he's everywhere! Bono! Whether it's saving the world from burning to a cinder or signing an exclusive deal with Motorola to promote his RED initiative, he's almost omnipresent. But where was he on Wednesday for the Champions' League Final between Arsenal (shirts sponsored by U2, er I mean O2) and Barcelona?

As I stood proudly in the Stade de France as a die-hard Brentford supporter and only having visited Highbury once in my life (makes you sick doesn't it?) , I expected Barcelona striker, er I mean Arsenal striker, Thierry Henry to have been replaced by the Great Man. And let's be honest, he might have done a better job. Henry, obviously, still hasn't found that goal he's looking for. Perhaps they're one, but they're not the same?

Sorry, cheap shot, or crap shot, depending on how you look at it. Arsenal should have won the game, but shirt sponsors O2 can be proud its team went so close. Siemens-Chelsea and Vodafone-Manchester United were nowhere to be seen. The only question that remains to be answered is whether O2 is still at Arsenal next season. Odds are they probably will be.

But fair play to Bono. Who else could have unite the operators with the release of a handset? The RED Motorola costs £149 and The Global Fund For Aids earns £10 for every handset sold and 5% of future revenues. Buyers of the phone can use it with any operator by merely replacing the SIM card. It's just fortunate that Bono's initiative is called RED and not ORANGE. That would have mashed up that deal.

Finally this week, I'm off on holiday and just like The Independent allowing Bono to edit the newspaper this week, I'm doing the same and inviting two guest editors to do so with this newsletter. I tried to get Bono, but he was busy, but I'll be announcing the two names early next week. About time there was a decent writer doing this newsletter.